Apple has been secretly working on a ChatGPT rival for years

Apple CEO Tim Cook has just revealed that the company has been working on generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools “for years.” The surprise announcement suggests that Apple could launch a ChatGPT rival — supposedly dubbed “Apple GPT” — sooner than anyone expected.

The announcement was made in an interview with Reuters following Apple’s third quarter earnings report. Cook explained that higher research and development (R&D) spending at the company had been driven in part by an increased focus on generative AI.

“We’ve been doing research…